Briquet-machine.



Patented Feb. 25, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET I.

Y G.4 KOMAIREK..

BRIQUET MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5,1918. 1,295,764.

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BRIQUET MACH|NE.

APPLICATION msn FEB. 5, ma.

` 1,295,764.` @muted Feb. 1919..

7 l 5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

G. KOMAREK.

BRIQUET MACHINE.

APPLICATION mgm FEB. s. |918.

Patented Feb. 25, 1919.v

, 5 SHEETS-SHEET 2- e. KOMAREK.

BRIQUET MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5.1918.

1,295,764. Patented Feb. 25, 1919.

K 5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

G. KOMAREK.

BRIQUET MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5. I9I8.

Patented Feb. 25, 1919.

5 SHEETS -SHEET 5.

fili" II'IIIIII rrnn sTaTns raTnN'r onirica.

GUSTAV KOMAREK, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR. TO ST. LOUIS BRIQUETTE MACHINE COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI,

A CORPORATION OF MISSOURI.

BRIQUET-MACHINE.

Application led February 5, 1918. Serial No. 215,445.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, GUsTAv KOMAREK, a

citizen of the United States, residing at the city of Chicago,

' sure,

of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvement in Briquet-Machines.l of which the following is a full, clear, and

. exact description, such as will enable'others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

My invention relates to that class of machines in which pulverized combustible material in plastic or semi-plastic condition iscompressed between revolving cylinders or drums to form fuel briquets and my present invention is an improvement on a machine of similar type U. S. Letters Patent, No. 1,164,822, for which was issued to my assignee December 21, 1915.

The principal objects of my present inven-` tion are to generally improve upon and simplify the construction. disclosed in the patent aforesaid; to provlde improved and positively acting means for maintaining ab,

solute alinement between the mold cavities inwhich the briquets are formed; to provide improved means whereby the feed of briqueting material to the mold cavities can be accurately regulated and controlled, even though should vary while the machine is in operation; to provide endless flexible members preferably in the form of chains having flat links and serving as the end walls for the mold cavities; to provide for the neutralizing of all stresses impressed on the parts which cooperate to form the briquets, thereby minimizing the wear upon said parts and producing -briquets which have uniform density throughout their bodies; to arrange thc chains which form the end walls of the `mold cavities so that they will maintain the same positions relative tothe mold rings for a short period of time immediately after the briquets have been subjected to highest presthereby minimizing the wear upon the chains and likewise minimizing the percentage of breakage of the briquets; and further, to provide a simple and effective compensating device for maintaining an equal amount of 'tension on the chains, which action is desirable due to the fact that the county of Cook, and State Fig. 1.

the plasticity of said material 11, and formed chains gradually become heated and consequently expand during the continued operation of the parts.

IVith the foregoing and other objects in view, my invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described and claimed and illustrated in the accom` Fig. 5 is a horizontal section taken approximately on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a detail horizontal section taken through portions of the drums of the machine and showing the mold cavities inthe peripheries of said drums and the chains which constitute the end walls of said mold cavities.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged vertical section taken approximately on the line 7-7 of Fig'. 3.

Fig. 8 is ay detail section taken lengthwise through the center of a portion of one of the chains forming a part of my improved press. I

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of one of the links lof the chain.

Referring by numerals to the accompanying drawings which illustrate a practical embodiment of my invention, IQ designates a base casting the sides of whichv are provided with upwardly projecting housmgs near the center of said base casting,are bearings 12 in which are journaled 'comparatively large and heavy shafts'- 13 und I4.

a feed box orfhopper 30, the construction and operation of which latter is fully disclosed in my copending application tiled November 28, 1917, Serial N o. 204,368.

The upper portions of the frames or levers 21 are connected to the upper portions of `frames or levers 20 by horizontally disposedv rods 31, and positioned on each of these rods.

is a comparatively heavy compression spring 32, the same beingarranged so as to noimally and 4with 'yield-ing pressure force the upper portions of the frames 'or levers 20 andv 21 toward each other, and consequently, resisting any tendency of said Ifrairies or levers to swingoutwardly away from each other.

' Itv will be understood 'thfat;-the material feeding box 30 is provided with interiorly arranged stirrers or agitating members,

which latter are carried on shafts a which pass through the box, and that the lower portion of said box is equipped with a manually adjustable plate b which controls the amount of briqueting material fed into the mold cavities on drum 27, and further, that said box is equipped with a series of rollers c, which'latter press the briqueting material into the mold cavities before the latter reach the point of highest pressure.

Formed in the upper portion of each housing 11 is a recess or pocket 33, and located on the housing and extending downwardly into `said pocket and at the sides thereof, are. wear plates 34. Pivotally secured to lugs or brackets 35 which project toward each -otherfrom the inner faces of the arm or levers 20 and 21, are thev outer ends of links 36, the inner ends thereof being pivotally connected to each otliei and carrying rollers, such as 37, the latter being mounted for vertical travel between the wear plates 34. .These pairs of links 36 and rollers 37 constitute equalizing devices which in operation linsures uniform .and corresponding .movement between the pairs of levers 20 and 21, and any appreciable movement of one .pair of levers will be immediately and coi-- respondingly imparted to the other pair, and

. 'as a result perfect alinement between the corresponding pairs of mold cavities is maintained.

Removably positioned on the periphery of drum -26 and clamped in position by means of screws 38 or like devices, is a mold ring ter coincide with the cavities 40. Disposed between these rows of mold cavities 43 are circumferentially disposed grooves 44. the same being positioned directly opposite to the corresponding grooves 41. This mold ring 42 is clamped to or secured in position upon drum 27 by side rings 45, which latter are removably secured in any suitable manner to the body of drum 27 and formed iii these side rings 45 are circumferentially disposed grooves 46. l

Passingover drum 27 and occupying the pairs of grooves 41 and 44 and the grooves 46, are chains 47'niade up of flat links as hereinafter described, and which chains constitute the end walls for the mold cavities 40 and 43. These chains 47 are endless and extend downward fioni drum 27 and pass around a grooved drum or pulley 48. the latter being carried by a shaft 49 which is journaled in boxes 50. These boxes are ai'- ranged for sliding movement upon posts 51 which are fixed to and depend from the base frame 10, and adjustably arranged between the upper portionsof each pair of posts is a sliding block 52. Iiiterposed between each of these blocks and the corresponding box 5() isv a coiiipaiatively heavy compression spring These springs normally exert downward pressure against the boxes 5t). thereby forcing shaft 49 and drinn 48 downward` with the result that all of the chains` 47 are maintained under a certain degree ot' tension even though they beconieheated and expand while ln service. The shaft-t9 carrying the drum 48 is offset a substantial degree with respect to tlie.vei'tical plane occupied by the axis of the driiiii 27. and by virtue ot' such arrangement and the fact that drinn 48 is considerably smaller in diameter than drum 27, the inner portion of the chains 47 or that portion traveling downward fijoiii :i point between the two mold ring carrying' drums to the inner side ot' drum 4S is inclined, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 7. with the result that the chains after passing the line of highest pressure given to the briquets .or a horizontal line drawn through the axes with respect to the mold cavities for a short distance after passi-ng below the line of highcst pressure, which action is effective in rclieving the chains of Wear due to lateral stresses of the pressure imparted to the briquets.

As illustrated in Figs. 8 and 9, each chain is made up of a series of flat links 54, the outer faces of which are-perfectly smooth and the inner faces being cut away at both ends, as designated by 55, in order to accommodate the end portions ofthe next adjacent links. Such construction leaves a transversely dis osed rib 56 on the inner face of each lin said rib being positioned between the ends of lthe associated links. Formed in the inner face of each link and concentric with the rivet hole therein, is a groove 57, and when a pair of the links are fitted together, the grooves in the inner faces of the overlying portions thereof constitute a circular chamber in which is fitted a ring 58 of bronze or other wear-resisting material. Preferably this ring is forced into the annular groove of one lilik before the latter is associated with the next adjacent link, and thus a joint is provided which has a relatively large bearing area. These rings are intended to receive the thrust from the fiat side of the chain before the adjacent faces of the links themselves meetl and as a result there is a material reduction of friction between the links while the chain is in service. Suitable rivets 59 are utilized for pivotally connecting the links of the chain to each other and are preferably provided with shoulders so as to make it practically impossible to am the links vwhile the smaller ends of the rivets are being upset.

By referring to my copending application hereinbeforev mentioned, it will be noted that the plate 7) is provided on its inner end with fingers .fr which project into the spaces between t-he chains 47, thereby regulating to the desired degree the amount of material fed into the mold cavities. and further, that the rollers c operate in the spaces between the chains and directly above the mold cavities to press the briqueting material into said cavities, thereby insuring the proper filling of the latter. By virtue of the position of the rollers c, this pressing operation takes place just before the briqueting material is subjected to highest pressure between the drums.

The operation of my improved briquet machine is as follows: j

Power shaft 19 is driven and through pinion 18 gear wheel 17 is driven. thereby imparting rotary motion to shaft 13. This rotary motion is transmitted through pinions 15 and 16 and gear wheels 24 and 25 to drums 26 and 27 and as the latter is rotated, the chains 47 will travel thereover and will pass from points between the two drums downwardly and thence around tension drum 48. `The. briqueting material is delivered into box or hopper 30,the open lower end of which is positioned immediately above the mold cavities in the ring 42 or drum 27 and said material will feed downwardly into the mold cavities between the chains #17, said material being immediately thereafter pressed into said cavities by the rollers c. It will be understood. of course, that the mold cavities formed in the rings on the two drums are in direct alinement with each other and as the briqueting material within the said cavities is carried downward, it is compressed until Iit passes the line of highest pressure which is the horizontal plane occupied by the axes of the two drums, and immediately after passing this pointthe companion cavitiescommence to separate or move awayfrom each other. Bul-ing thetime the briqueting material is subjected to pressure between the drums. the flat outer faces of the chains 47 serve as end walls'for the mold cavities. with the result that the lateral pressure or pressure length-r wise through the bodies of the briquets is directed immediately against both sides of the chains. In view of the fact that the chains are disposed between the rows of mold cavities, the pressure of the material between the rolls is equal in both directions against the side faces of each chain. Consequently, the stresses due to` high compression are neutralized and briquets of uniform density are produced.

It will be noted that the chains after leaving the point of highest pressure move downwardly at an angle or in other words they do not leave the periphery of drum 27 until they have traveled ashort distance below the line of highest pressure. This particular action is very desirable for the reason that it entirely eliminates friction between the fiat joints of the chain links during the time they leave or pass off the drum 27 and travel downward to tension drum lfthis arrangement were not carried out, the pressure against the chains from each side while theyare leaving the drum would produce an abnormal amount of friction between the flat joints of the chain, which would cause the links to wear rapidly and soon render the chain unfit for service. The inclination of the chains permits them to travel downwardly with the briquets for a short distance before said chains leave the drum and during this time the pressure upon the briquets is being relieved gradually until such time as the'links of the chain can open or move relative to each other without thrusts and consequent wear.

It will be understood that the pressure necessarY to form the briquets is created through the tendency of the mold drums to move away from veach other and such movement is yieldingly resisted by the relatively heavy compression springs 32. The mold drums are carried by the frames or levers 20 and 21 and the latter are connected for simultaneous and synchronous movement toward and away from each other through the connected pairs of links 3G and the rollers 3T carried thereby, which latter in the event of movement travel vertically between the wear plates 3-L. By virtue of these equalizing devices, it is impossible for one roll to move toa greater or less degree than the other and any slight movement of one roll or pair of arms carrying the same will be correspondingly transmitted to the other. The feed box 30 is carried by the arms or levers 31 and therefore any swinging movement of the latter will not affect the relative positions of said feed box and drum 2T. which latter is carried by said arms or levers 21. The spring pressed roller 48 maintains an equal amount of tension on all of the chains and this tension is desirable and necessary particularly as said chains tend to become heated and expand while in service.l

A briquet machine of my improved construction is comparatively simple. can`be operated with relatively little power. produces briquets which have uniform density throughout their bodies. and as the operation of the machine is continuous. a comparatively large tonnage of briquets can be produced within a given length of time.

Obviously. lninor changes in the size. form and construction of the various parts of my improved briquet machine can be made `and substituted for those herein disclosed vwithout departing from the spirit ot' my invention. the scope otl which is set t'orth in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

l. In a briquet machine. a pair of pressure drums provided in their peripheries with circumterentially disposed rows of mold cavities. and chains carried by one of said drums and disposed'between the rows of mold cavities. which chains constitute end walls for the cooperating mold cavities of thel two drums at thc point of highest pressure between said drums.

2. In a briquetmachine. a -pair of pressure drums provided in their peripheries with circumferentially disposed rows of mold cavities. chains carried by one ot' said drums and disposed between the rows of mold cavities. which chains.constitute end walls for the cooperating mold cavities of the two drums at the point of highest pressure between said drums, and means for retaining the inner down-running portions of the chainsin position upon the drum upon which said chains are mounted t'ora sub stantial distance below the point of highest pressure between said drlnns.

3. In a briquet machine,a pair 'of pivot- Vrally mounted substantially upright frames,

. ferentially disposed rows of mold cavities,

and there being grooves formed between said rows of mold cavities, and chains carried by one of said drums and disposed within the grooves therein, which chains constitute the end walls for `the mold cavities.

In a briquet machine, a pair ot pivotally mounted substantially upright frames. drums journaled in said frames, the peripheries of which drums are provided with mold cavities, means for yieldingly resisting the movement of said frames away from each other. and vmovement equalizing means arranged between said frames; In a briquet machine, a pair of pivotally mounted substantially upright frames` cooperating mold drums journaled in said frames. means for simultaneously rotating said drums, pivotally connected links connecting` said frames. and means t'or guiding the pivotally connected ends of said links which guiding means is parallel to the common tangent to the rollers at their point ot' contact'. l

'i'. In a briquet machine, a pair of pivotally mounted substantially upright. frames.

cooperating mold drums journaled in said trames. means for simultaneously rotating said drums` pivotally connectedlinks connecting said frames, rollers carried'by said links. and guiding means for said rollers which guiding means parallel to the common tangent to the rollers at their point ot' contact.

S. In a briquet machine. a pair of cooperating rcvoluble drums provided in theirl peripheries with circlnnferentially disposed rows of mold cavities. chains arranged to travel over one of the drums and disposed between the mold cavities formed therein. which chains constitute end walls for the co. 'iperating mold cavities of the two drums. and means whereby the inner down-running portions of the chains are held in positions inclined toward the vertical plane occupied by the axis of the, drum on which 'Said chains operate and for normally maintaining said chainsl in taut. condition.

In testnno'nv GUSTAV KOM AREK Witness LAURA E. SMITH.

whereof I hereunto atlix my= 

